The proposal is named The Tennessee Student Free Speech Protection Act

The state legislature of Tennessee is considering a bill which will ensure universities and colleges are powerless to punish students on the basis of making mean or offensive comments.

The proposal, named The Tennessee Student Free Speech Protection Act, would ban institutions from creating systems that allow students to report incidents with the expectation of disciplinary action, unless it involves a “genuine threat or harassment.”

It would also prohibit schools from punishing students for “microaggressions,” which refers to incidents where people take offence to a subtle or even misunderstood comment.

“The best kind of educational environment is one where there’s a lot of controversy and conversation about various issues, and we encourage students to speak up,” state Rep. Martin Daniel, a Knoxville Republican who introduced the bill, told The College Fix.